So what did you have? I love chicken Francaise...this is a good basic recipe from Epicurious although I usually wing it and I like the sliced lemon added to the pan. Yield: Makes 4 servings ingredients 4 large skinless boneless chicken breast halves (2 pounds total) 1/2 cup vegetable oil 1 cup all-purpose flour 3/4 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon black pepper 3 large eggs 1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter 1/2 cup dry white wine 1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice plus 1 whole lemon, thinly sliced 1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley preparation Place chicken breasts between 2 sheets of plastic wrap and gently pound chicken with flat side of a meat pounder or with a rolling pin until 1/4 inch thick. Heat oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderate heat until hot but not smoking. While oil is heating, stir together flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a shallow bowl. Dredge 2 pieces of chicken, 1 piece at a time, in flour mixture, shaking off excess. Lightly beat eggs in another shallow bowl. When oil is hot, dip floured chicken into beaten eggs to coat, letting excess drip off, then fry, turning over once, until golden brown and just cooked through, about 4 minutes total. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towels and keep warm, loosely covered with foil. Fry remaining chicken in same manner. Pour off and discard oil, then wipe skillet clean and heat butter over low heat until foam subsides. Add wine, broth, and lemon juice and boil, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until sauce is reduced to about 1/2 cup, about 6 minutes. Stir in parsley and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Spoon sauce over chicken and top with lemon slices.

Good recipes are where you find them. :) Most of my mentions below (which I won't edit out in case they're of interest to anyone) are for baking and the cooking ones are for a specific method or flavor. I realized in thinking about this, that most of my cooking is what I learned at home. Another great learning experience, however, was cooking through a bunch of recipes that I was editing, and needed to photograph, for a newsletter. Many were things I wouldn't have otherwise made, most were decent to good, if not great, and inviting people to lunch, regularly, to eat the results made for great socializing. Think Julie and Julia, without the drama. :) So I'd suggest you go through the books you have and make every recipe that has ingredients you like and see what you get. :) I don't make a lot of recipes from cookbooks, but I will use them as guides. I have dozens, and like to read through them for inspiration. When I was trying to raise my game with braises, which I love because they're inexpensive and you just throw everything in a pot, I made a few from All About Braising: The Art of Uncomplicated Cooking by Molly Stevens. The duck legs with sour cherries is worth the price of the book. :) But it's a lot of doing stuff for a braise, and I haven't made it again. Recently, I was given Plenty by Yoram Ottolenghi and it's fabulous, but I haven't made anything from it yet. I also use recipes from the 'net. I like finding ones that have a lot of comments. That's better than lab testing! I have many baking specific cookbooks and couldn't find a good recipe for plain chocolate cake. I wanted it to make cake with an 8-year-old, so I wanted a plain old cake, and not a mix. I could have invented a chocolate pound cake, but I finally found this on Add A Pinch blog. It really is that good, and we made it (twice) without the secret ingredient (espresso powder), and it was still that good (I used Valrhona cocoa). The best bundt cake recipe I ever made was also from a blog, which is gone now. It had a perfect crumb and was truly delicious. My most popular cake is a pumpkin chocolate marble bundt from Sunset magazine. The linked fig pie is also a big hit. The Black Family Reunion Cookbook from the NCNW (which is a from the store, bound volume) is another favorite, with all kinds of different recipes for cornpone and corn muffins, my favorite Passover green vegetable kugel is from a local congregation cookbook, and the "family" matzah ball recipe originated with one put out by the local Hadassah. When I make bread pudding, I refer to the recipe in It's All American Food by David Rosengarten, but I don't make precisely that. I do make the arroz con pollo as directed (more or less--it's my mother's recipe (her book, that is) and I think there are some changes she's made over the years) from The Spice Cookbook by Stuckey, Day and Spier from the 1960's. What I'm trying to say is having a favorite recipe from whatever source, is normal. Don't think of it as underutilizing your cookbooks. Think of it as cherishing the best they have to offer. :)

Glenda, he liked it a lot. But he would've loved those fried chicken thighs. Georgysmom, I won't have to cook tomorrow either. My potatoes was huge and Harry's dinner serves 2 (or in his case 3). Joann, I've never made or eaten potato pancakes that I remember but people sure do love them. I would like the veggies in teriyaki--how did you do that? Lindalou, just be glad Jim's getting rid of something in the frig. But your dinner sounds better. Sue, you really are working way too hard. Hope you can get a break from all that hot canning for a few days this weekend. Really, you need a break, my dear!! Shirley, that sounds so good. Thanks for the milk tip. Wish I 'd read it before dinner. I will do that on the leftover potato tomorrow. I had quite a bad time of it so drank a Kellogg's Special K drink and ate some Kozy Shack tapicoa. Jasdip--wow, what a great price on Napa. That's probably my favorite cabbage. And it's so pretty!! That's a good way to package the peaches because people think you squeeze them to see if they're ripe--wrong--just smell them. I hope there were vents in them. Raven, all good things must come to an end--sigh! At least you know your DH is going to be a happy guy tonight (happy to see you even more than the home-cooked meal).

I love to see pics too! Often times I forget to take a pic but can find one online of the same dish. Spicy Georgia Peach Chicken 4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves salt and pepper 2 tablespoons olive oil 1 tablespoon butter ý cup light brown sugar ý cup Hidden Valley Original Ranch Spicy Ranch Dressing 2 tablespoons prepared Dijon mustard 1 can (15-ounce) sliced peaches, drained and cut into chunks Season chicken breasts with salt and pepper. In a large skillet, over medium heat add the olive oil and heat until shimmering. Add the chicken and cook for 5 to 7 minutes on each side or until golden and juices run clear. Remove the chicken to a plate. Reduce the heat and add the butter, melt the butter together with the brown sugar, stirring until smooth. Stir in both the dressing and mustard, stirring until bubbly. Return the chicken to the pan, add the peaches and cook until heated through. Serve immediately. With the big chicken breast I have been getting lately it would take longer to cook them till done. I think a few pieces of pineapple or mandarin would be good in there too. click to enlarge